Rare, deadly disease may have spread in hospital

NEW ORLEANS -- A patient who died after brain surgery had an incurable disease that may have spread to eight other patients through tainted instruments, hospital officials said.

Tulane University Hospital and Clinic destroyed the instruments as soon as officials realized the first patient had died from Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, said Dr. Alan Miller, a Tulane vice president.

The patient checked into the hospital in March and the disease was diagnosed in an autopsy in May, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday. The university said the other patients all had brain surgeries and the surgical instruments were put through ''normal'' washing and sterilization procedures.

The eight living patients are receiving counseling and related medical care, Miller said in a statement.